Granite Gear Crown2 60 Backpack :: Road Test

Features

This is a feature-rich bag near the 2-pound mark. Here are a few of the headliners.

Removable top lid

Let’s talk about the top lid for a second. The only reason I leave it on is for organization. I like to have all my creature comforts in one spot, and the ability to remove that compartment from the pack and take it into the tent is nice to have. That said, this bag is catered to the ounce counters, so lots of folks will ditch the lid. I actually like its versatility.

“The only reason I leave [the lid] on is for organization. I like to have all my creature comforts in one spot, and the ability to remove that compartment from the pack and take it into the tent is nice to have.”

Here are two ways you can utilize that compartment outside of a top lid, and we’re putting Granite Gear on blast here so the designers can get these modifications patterned out for next year.

Fanny packs don’t suck| Add a small sleeve on the underside of the lid so that I can rock this on my day hikes out from a base camp.

Chest pack| This is the must-add. Crazy convenient, the lid is already the right size—all this mod requires to be a reality is some male/female buckle shuffling and a zipper move. Make it happen, Granite Gear!

Removable RE-FIT system hip belt

The RE-FIT system is great twofold. First, you can dial in the length of the hip belt. If you’re a 34-inch waist, dial it in to 34 inches. Simple. Many thru-hikers have struggled with hip belt sizing as they lose weight over their journeys. The RE-FIT makes it fast and easy to readjust as you lose weight. Boom. The other nice thing about the RE-FIT system is that if your hips are wide or narrow, you can adjust the distance up front to move your padding to where it works best for you.

“Many thru-hikers have struggled with hip belt sizing as they lose weight over their journeys. The RE-FIT makes it fast and easy to readjust as you lose weight.”

When I used the pack as a carryon, I removed the hip belt to get through my gate a little easier—I’m always worried the attendants are going to be like, “Sir, you’re crazy, that’s a sixty-liter pack. You can’t take that on the plane.” So I ditch the belt and crank down the compression. It’s also good for you crazy ultralight hikers who have base weights sub 4.5 kg.

Removable polypropylene framesheet

If you’re really counting your ounces and want to drop 6.5 of them, the framesheet slides right out. It’s a bit stiffer, albeit heavier, than its predecessor, but the result is an extremely stable loading platform near the two-pound mark. Compared to the original Crown, the Crown2 has additional cutouts that drop weight and compression molded channels that increase rigidity.